EU Commission and Parliament: cooperation or tug of war?
The next steps in the creation of the European Commission, the EU’s “executive” body with key roles in lawmaking, setting, managing and implementing the EU budget and policies, and as the “guardian” of the Treaties, are currently being finalised in Brussels. The 27-member College of Commissioners has a fundamental role to play in the process of European integration. It should be remembered that the Commission is not called upon to promote the interests of the Member States (in fact, this is the responsibility of the national government representatives in the Council), nor is it tasked with transmitting to the EU institutions the various requests of European citizens and political parties – which is the responsibility of the European Parliament. Rather, as laid down in the Treaties, the Commission represents the common interests of the EU. That is, the European interest as a whole.
In order to fulfil the non-partisan task they are called upon to perform, the Commissioners must renounce their national and party allegiances.
There are a number of steps that must be successfully completed before the Commission can take office. After the nomination of Ursula von der Leyen by the European Council -i.e. the heads of state and government – in June, and the vote of confidence by the European Parliament at its July session, in August each national government announced its candidate for the College. The President subsequently handed out the top jobs and introduced the College to the plenary session in Strasbourg in September. Parliamentary hearings of EU commissioners-designate will be held from 4 to 12 November, when Parliament will evaluate each Commissioner’s unwavering commitment and support to the European project and their personal expertise in their respective areas of competence (economy, security, trade, the Green Deal, agriculture, research, youth, the NRP, the budget, enlargement, the housing crisis, animal health, etc.). Finally, there will be a vote of confidence by the European Parliament. These are very delicate steps. During the hearings, each Commissioner-designate will be asked to answer a written questionnaire, followed by an hours-long grilling by MEPs.
As previous hearings have shown, a number of elements come into play. In fact, before placing their trust in a Commissioner, MEPs quite rightly put them through a series of tough questions. These questions often become a veritable cross-questioning on the candidates’ country of origin, the political party they belong to and their political record.
Sometimes the interviews go smoothly, other times they take on the characteristics of an ambush.
The hearings are thus intended to evaluate not only whether the commissioner-designate merits Parliament’s vote of confidence, but also, albeit indirectly, whether the MEPs are fulfilling their role by overcoming past animosities and preconceptions.
This game will be played out in Brussels and Strasbourg this coming October and November, with the hope that the Commission will finally be operational on 1 December. There is no shortage of political emergencies, and citizens have the right to expect that the institutions in place are properly functioning, led by individuals qualified for the role and capable of working together for the greater good of the peoples of Europe.
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